Clouded Leopard

Scientific Name: Neofelis nebulosa | Current Range: South Asia, Taiwan

This cat has characteristics of both the big cats (Panthera) and the small cats (Felis). Length of body 24 to 43 inches plus a bushy tail of 24 to 35 inches, weight 33 to 44 pounds. Coat is especially handsome. Color will vary from dark brown to ochre with black stripes, spots and blotches. Clouded leopards have very good binocular vision and are able to see in light 6 times darker than humans can see. These cats are very arboreal. They are active in the early morning and late afternoon into the evening. They have been seen resting in trees during the remainder of the day and night.

The clouded leopard has gestation about 85 to 92 days with a litter of 1 to 4 kittens, usually 2. Kittens are blind and helpless at birth and do not open eyes until 10 to 12 days. They become active at 5 weeks and independent at 9 months. In the wild clouded leopards eat monkeys, squirrels, birds, small orangutans small deer, and wild boar. In zoos they eat ground horsemeat with vitamins, liver, chicken gizzards, quail and knuckle bone plus 1 rabbit a week. Lifespan is unknown in the wild, but in captivity these cats live for 17 years.

The principal cause of decline is large scale loss of forest habitat. The Clouded Leopard is widely hunted for its pelt, teeth and bones for use in traditional Asian medicinal trade.

The Clouded Leopard is protected over most of its range. In 1990, a European Captive Breeding Programme was agreed upon in Copenhagen. The Europaische Erhaltungszucht Programme (EEP) for the Clouded Leopard will "... hold workshops on the many varied aspects that are needed for the management of this species in captivity ...". At present, information is being collated from European collections in the International Studbook and the International Zoo Yearbo ok. The IUCN/Species Survival Commission (SSC) Cat Specialist Group are preparing a World Cat Conservation Strategy and Action Plan, which will identify further conservation initiatives needed to ensure the survival of the Clouded Leopard.